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Understanding of pictograms from the United States Pharmacopeia Dispensing Information (USP-DI) among elderly Brazilians
Authors Barros IM, Alcântara T, Mesquita AR, Lima Bispo ML, Rocha CE, Moreira VP, Lyra Junior DP
Received 1 April 2014
Accepted for publication 18 June 2014
Published 29 October 2014 Volume 2014:8 Pages 1493—1501
DOI https://doi.org/10.2147/PPA.S65301
Checked for plagiarism Yes
Review by Single anonymous peer review
Peer reviewer comments 3
Izadora MC Barros, Thaciana S Alcântara, Alessandra R Mesquita, Monica L Bispo, Chiara E Rocha, Vagner Porto Moreira, Divaldo P Lyra Junior
Laboratory of Teaching and Research in Social Pharmacy (LEPFS), Department of Pharmacy, Federal University of Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Brazil
Objective: To assess the understanding and cultural acceptability of the United States Pharmacopeia Dispensing Information (USP-DI) in a group of elderly Brazilians.
Methods: The study participants were individuals between 60 and 90 years old, of both sexes, with different levels of education and income. Fifteen of 81 pictograms from the USP-DI were presented to the elderly subjects, individually, without subtitles and in random order, so that the participants’ understanding of the pictograms could be evaluated.
Results: The study included 116 participants. Only one of the selected pictograms reached the comprehension criterion established by the International Organization for Standardization 3864. With regard to the relationship between understanding and sociodemographic characteristics, age, wage income, and level of education were all found to be significantly associated with participants’ understanding of some of the pictograms.
Conclusion: Most of the USP-DI pictograms evaluated were not well understood by the elderly Brazilians. This finding indicates that such pictograms need to be culturally adapted for the Brazilian context if they are to serve their purpose effectively in this country.
Keywords: pictograms, understanding, elderly, Brazil
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